Friday, November 29, 2013

No new lovelies have really floated my boat lately, so instead of my "gal" Friday feature today you'll have to settle for a jungle comics oddity from the silver age. Joe "Cowboy" King was an American World War II pilot who operated in and around India, who dressed and acted like a cowboy. Even though the military command thought his personal theatrics were quite ridiculous, they could not deny that he was their best pilot. After a series of misadventures involving a cheating sultan, Joe became the ruler of Larijuna and was crowned their new sultan, he then ordered his people to call him Cowboy (to which they added the honorific Sahib and thus he became Cowboy Sahib). This previously untitled tale that I’ve dubbed “The Cossack Trap” is from Hooded Horseman #18 (Nov-Dec.1954); originally published by American Comics Group and illustrated by Leonard Starr. The Catacombs acknowledges "Comic Book Plus" as the source of this classic comic story. Note: The copyright for this issue, its contents and artwork belongs to the original publishers and/or the creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes.Enjoy!

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Wild Boy stars today in “Wrath of the Gods” from Wild Boy #6
(Apr.1952); originally published by Ziff-Davis and illustrated by Frank Kramer.
Trivia: While no longer a publisher of comic books, the Ziff Davis media company
still exists and is a major player in the field of computer and internet
related publishing.
The Catacombs acknowledges "Comic Book Plus" as the source of this
classic comic story. Note: The copyright for this issue, its contents and
artwork belongs to the original publishers and/or the creators and is
reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes.Enjoy!

Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Dagar Desert Hawk was a Bedouin robed adventurer that
originally appeared in All Great Comics #13 (Dec.1947) published by Fox Feature
Syndicate. Dagar took over the title the following month for an eight issue
run. The character posted one additional golden age appearance in All Top Comics #18 (July
1949). "Vortex of Death" is from Dagar Desert Hawk #15 (Apr. 1948);
originally published by Fox and illustrated by his creator, artist Edmond Good. The
Catacombs acknowledges "Comic Book Plus" as the source of this
classic comic story. Note: The copyright for this issue, its contents and
artwork belongs to the original publishers and/or the creators and is
reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes.Enjoy!

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Camilla
returns to the Catacombs today in “The Golden Death” written by Victor Ibsen
and illustrated by George Tuska from Jungle Comics #51 (Mar.1944); originally
published by Fiction House. The Catacombs acknowledges "Comic Book
Plus" as the source of this classic comic story. Note: The copyright for
this issue, its contents and artwork belongs to the original publishers and/or
the creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes.Enjoy!

Friday, November 15, 2013

Actress Jana Kramer appeared as "Alex Dupre" on the CW Network television series "One Tree Hill" from 2009-2012. She went on to become a decent country music singer, but that's not why she landed the gig as this weeks official "gal" Friday selection. I knew nothing of her, until I happened to comment upon the hot chick playing the part of a friendly cat burglar aiding a home that was being robbed in a popular Nationwide Insurance commercial. My daughter set me straight on who Ms. Kramer actually was; apparently my offspring had continued to watch One Tree Hill. The rest of us had given up when most of the original cast left the series in earlier seasons?

Oh, well! Jana is certainly a sexy girl and she has a nice voice, but don't plan on cozying up to her in any type of romatic scenario. She has had two short term marriages, including one to actor Johnathon Schaech (That Thing You Do) each of which barely lasted a month. Her relationship to another country musician (Brantley Gilbert) apparently endured for eight months, but once it became public ... oops. Can you say "Over?" Cute, sexy and can sing her little heart out, but she drops guys like a hot potatoe when it suits her; and that's nothing but fodder for a sad country music hit.

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Ka’a’ngaappears
today in an early golden age adventure from Jungle Comics #17 (May 1941); originally
published by Fiction House. The title for “Valley of the Killer-Birds” comes
from that issues cover, written by [‘Frank Riddell’] and illustrated by John
Celardo. The Catacombs is grateful to Don “Zu-Gogo” Falkos for providing the
scans for this story. Note: The copyright for this issue, its contents and
artwork belongs to the original publisher and/or creators and is reproduced
here solely for entertainment purposes.Enjoy!

Monday, November 4, 2013

Golden Age comic book artist, Eisner Hall of Famer and WWII veteran (earning two Purple Hearts for wounds suffered as a tank driver in the armored cavalry), Nicholas Viscardi has passed away at the age of ninety-three. "Nick Cardy" produced a prodigious amount of cover art for DC Comics in the 1960's and 1970s, so much so that he established himself as a cornerstone of the Distinguished Competition during his tenure at DC. Beyond that he remained as penciller on Aquaman for almost forty issues and is equally recognized for his work on Teen Titans, Bat Lash, House of Mystery, House of Secrets, Justice League of America, Tales of the Unexpected, and World's Finest. In 1950, Cardy began drawing the black-and-white daily Tarzan comic strip for writer-artist Burne Hogarth.From 1952 to 1953, Cardy assisted Warren Tufts on Tufts' comic strip Casey Ruggles. He left comics in the mid-1970s for the more lucrative field of commercial art. He painted many movie one-sheet posters including Apocalypse Now. The Catacombs extends its sincerest condolences to his family, friends and fans. I count myself lucky for having gotten to see Nick many times at conventions over the years, and will continue to treasure my original Bat Lash sketch.

How it all began ....

In 1933, publishers at Eastern Color Press, intent to make better use of their printing equipment (which frequently sat idle between jobs), came up with the idea of printing an 8-page comic section that could be folded down from the large broadsheet to a smaller 9-inch by 12-inch format. The result was the first modern comic book. Containing reprints of newspaper comic strips, this experimental comic book titled "Funnies On Parade" was given away for free. It proved so popular that the following year Eastern published "Famous Funnies" and took the bold step of selling the comic for ten cents through chain stores. The enterprise was a smashing success and Eastern began churning out numerous reprints on a monthly basis. Other publishers, eager to get in on the profits, jumped on the bandwagon and the comic book industry was born!